The Effect of the Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) on the Performance of Commercial Banks in Zambia

In Accordance With The Accountants Act 2008 All Public Listed Firms In Zambia Were Mandated To Publish Their Financial Reports In Accordance With IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) In The Year 2010 When Zambia Institute Of Chartered Accountants (ZICA) Established A Reporting Framework Where All Public Interest Entities, Listed Companies And Government Owned Companies Are Required To Use Full IFRS. By The Year 2016 Almost All Commercial Banks Operating In Zambia Had Migrated To IFRS. As A Result Of This, There Have Been Controversies As To The Consequence Of This Convergence From The Zambian Financial Reporting Standards [Zambian Generally Acceptable Accounting Principles (ZGAAP)] To International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) On Firm’s Financial Performance And Position. This Study Aims To Investigate The Impact Of IFRS On The Performance Of Commercial Banks Operating In Zambia. A Descriptive Financial Ratio Analysis Is Used To Assess And Make Comparison On The Performance Of Three Sampled Banks Covering A Period Of Four Years (2014 – 2017). The Study Was Carried By Comparing The Ratios That Were Calculated From IFRS Compliant Financial Statements And Zambian GAAP Compliant Financial Statements. Commercial Bank’s Performance Was Measured In Relation To Liquidity, Profitability, Leverage, And Asset Quality. An Independent T-Test Was Used In Testing Whether There Is A Statistically Significant Difference Between The Ratios. The Result Of This Analysis Revealed A Statistically Significant Difference Due To The IFRS Adoption